Although he has not played a game yet this season, DeMarcus Cousins will have a big market next summer. Should the LA Clippers give him a look?
He hasn’t suited up yet in the 2018-19 season, but DeMarcus Cousins will likely be a sought after this coming summer when he again hits free agency. Should the LA Clippers take a look at the center?
Cousins as an option
The Clippers proved again last night that they need a center. After being dominated yet again by a big man last night against the 76ers, fans started to realize that maybe our current big man core of Marcin Gortat, Boban Marjanovic and Montrezl Harrell may not cut it.
Cousins is still in the midst of recovering from his ruptured achilles, but will likely suit up in the coming weeks for the Golden State Warriors. If he returns to his pre-injury form, he will be a highly sought after player next summer.
The Clippers could free up two max contract slots next summer and while Kevin Durant and Kawhi Leonard are the two apparent targets, Cousins may deserve a look. Pairing him alongside one of the scoring forwards could make for a potent offense and while he may not be a defensive stopper, he does have a career positive defensive box plus/minus.
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By signing Cousins and an elite forward, the Clippers could host a complete starting lineup. The lineup would feature him, the forward, either Tobias Harris or Danilo Gallinari (Depending on which way the team goes) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with Montrezl Harrell and Lou Williams off the bench.
Cousins would also add a new wrinkle to the Clippers by having a developed outside shot. Outside of Blake Griffin towards the end of his tenure, the Clips have not featured a truly threatening big man who is capable of also knocking down the triple.
At 28-years-old, he is still in the prime of his career, so giving him a max deal isn’t out of the question. A four year deal would end when he is 32, which while on the downside of many careers, isn’t the worst.
But, maybe not…
The most obvious reason would be there are better options. KD and Kawhi are the obvious two, but the team could also look to get just one and then keep most of the team’s core together.
Cousins also has had some image issues at times and with the Clippers seemingly trying to re-brand themselves, he may not fit in.
Then, of course, there is the injury. A ruptured achilles is nothing to laugh about and even though all signs have been positive during his recovery, we still don’t know what the long-term effects could be.
Yes, I just said he’s only 28, but the achilles is now weakened and could bother him for the rest of his career. Having just gotten rid of Blake Griffin in part due to his injury history and concern over paying someone with said history into their thirties, it doesn’t seem like the franchise would just go and give Cousins a max deal.
It is honestly not likely that the Clips even make a play for him as he has apparently already discussed re-joining the Warriors even on just another one year deal.
There is too much uncertainty in bringing Cousins in and using up a max contract spot when the front office has been building up to this summer. Still, if the Clippers want to address their issue at center, they could do a lot worse.